Live Happy Now

These days, most of us are taking a more hands-on approach to our health. And this week’s guest is going to explain why both physical and mental health are all in the gut. Dr. Sabine Hazan is a leading researcher and practitioner in the field of the gut microbiome. She’s here to talk about what a gut microbiome is, how it affects our overall well-being, and how to improve your own gut microbiome. In this episode, you’ll learn: What a gut microbiome is. How your gut microbiome affects your mental health. Why your gut microbiome is key to a healthy immune system.

Pets bring us a tremendous amount of joy, but their loss creates a deep sense of grief. This week, as we honor National Dog Day on August 26 and Grief Awareness Day on August 30, we’re looking at the complicated journey of pet loss. This week’s guest, Brittany Derrenbacher, has focused her mental health studies on the complicated journey of pet loss and is here to tell us more about how to navigate this journey. In this episode, you’ll learn: The “3 G’s” of pet loss. Why it’s so important to acknowledge the loss of our pets. The role of gratitude in grief.

Singer songwriter Mary Gauthier has been changing the world one song at a time for the past 20 years. This week, Mary joins host Paula Felps to talk about her new book, Saved by a Song: The Art and Healing Power of Songwriting, which is a fascinating look at the healing power of music both for those who create it and those who listen to it. She also talks with us about her work with SongwritingWith:Soldiers and Frontline Songs, and how those organizations are using music to help individuals heal from the trauma they’ve experienced. In this episode, you’ll learn: How Mary found her calling as a songwriter. Why music is so important to our mental health. How music is helpful in healing from trauma.

The International Positive Psychology Association holds its World Congress to bring together the leading researchers and practitioners every other year. This week, host Paula Felps and Live Happy editor Chris Libby talk about some of the programs we enjoyed during this year’s virtual IPPA World Congress and discuss what research most intrigued and surprised us — and what we’re excited to learn more about. Here’s how that conversation went. In this episode, you’ll learn: The latest research in positive psychology. How the pandemic affected our mental health. The importance of resilience and post-traumatic growth.

Health and happiness go hand in hand, but sometimes it’s hard to know where to start creating a healthier home. This week’s guest has been there, and she brought along a roadmap! Tonya Harris, a board-certified holistic nutritionist and author of The Slightly Greener Method, shows us how little adjustments can have a big impact on your family’s health. She shares how to create a cleaner, greener and healthier home. In this episode, you’ll learn: The danger of being “aggressively green.” What the READ method is and how it can guide you on your detox journey. How to spot the toxins in the products you use.

Last year, poet Maggie Smith gave us the book we needed with the bestseller Keep Moving: Notes on Loss, Creativity and Change. This year, she’s back with a new book that helps us rediscover the magic of living in the moment. In this episode, Maggie talks about her new book, Goldenrod, which explores such common themes as parenthood, gratitude, solitude, love and loss. Then she explains how she has learned to live in the moment. In this episode, you’ll learn: The importance of slowing down and paying attention to the world around you. How being less busy can make you more productive. The importance of taking time to see things from a new perspective.

As the song says, ya gotta have friends. But do you know just how good they are for you? This week’s guest, Hal Urban, is a lifelong teacher and author whose positive outlook has earned him the nickname, “The Good News Guy.” With his new book, The Power of Good News: Feeding Your Mind With What’s Good for Your Heart, he looks at the importance of positivity in our lives. In this episode, he explains what friendships do for us and how we can better understand and tap into their benefits. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why it’s important to seek out friendship. The health benefits we receive from our friendships. How friendships help build more positivity.

Summertime is a great time to catch up on your reading, and this week, we’re going to give you some tips on great positive psychology reads for the rest of your summer. Andrea Goeglein is an author, business consultant and co-founder of the Hey, Boss Lady! podcast. She also has advanced training in positive psychology and incorporates its elements into her work as a success coach for business leaders. This week, she talks about five groundbreaking positive psychology books that can make your summer happier and improve your well-being. In this episode, you’ll learn: What we can learn from the early positive psychology research. Why it’s important to know the roots of current research. How to start building your own reading list.

Stress and anxiety are something we’re all familiar with, but this week’s guest uses the science of epigenetics to discover how stress and trauma from previous generations are affecting us today. Dr. Valerie Rein’s book, Patriarchy Stress Disorder: The invisible Inner Barrier to Women’s Happiness and Fulfillment, looks at the research behind this reality and provides tools for identifying and managing intergenerational stress. Today, she’s here to talk about how this works in our lives and how we can identify and overcome it. In this episode, you’ll learn: How toxic stress from trauma is passed on through generations. What Patriarchy Stress Disorder is and why it is the cause of so much underlying stress. Why the pandemic was particularly challenging for women — and what to do about it now.

Our world has become increasingly divided, but this week’s guest tells us how we can begin to close that divide. Peter Montoya is a thought leader, speaker and author who promotes civility and self-leadership as tools for change. His new book, The Second Civil War: A citizen’s guide to healing our fractured nation, looks at the challenges we’re facing as a society, how technology and media consumption increases our anxiety, and what each of us can do to help stop the conflict. In this episode, you'll learn: What excessive news consumption and social media do to our brains. How to reduce your anxiety and create a new way to consume media. Actionable steps to begin healing damaged relationships.

Today’s technology-driven world allows us to connect with others and stay informed like never before. But it’s no secret that living in the information age is also keeping us distracted and drained. In this episode, host Paula Felps talks with Dr. Charles Chaffin, a researcher, educator and the author of Numb: How the Information Age Dulls Our Senses and How We Can Get Them Back. His research looks at how our attention is being affected by everything from social media and cable news to dating apps and pornography. In this episode, you’ll learn: What the information overload is doing to our mental health. How 24/7 news feeds are affecting our compassion. How we can better manage our attention in such a noisy world.

For almost 20 years, Dr. Kristin Neff has been teaching us about how to improve our well-being through self-compassion. Now, she’s teaching us how to get fierce. Kristin is a pioneer in the field of self-compassion and her newest book, Fierce Self-Compassion, looks at an often-overlooked aspect of self-compassion. But fierce self-compassion is just as important to our well-being as tender self-compassion, and she’s here to tell us why. In this episode, you’ll learn: The difference between tender self-compassion and fierce self-compassion. Why it’s particularly important for women to learn how to practice fierce self-compassion. Simple ways to begin implementing fierce self-compassion.

Creativity is something that often gets put on the back burner in our busy lives filled with obligations and deadlines. But Jill Allison Bryan believes that saying “yes” to your creative dreams can help make you a happier, healthier and more fulfilled human being—while making the world a better place. Jill is the founder of Creative Oasis Coaching and she has devoted her life to helping people identify their creative desires and helps them lose their creative blocks to discover freedom, purpose and joy. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why using creativity affects your happiness. How to prioritize creativity — even if you think you’re too busy. How to create your own creativity summer camp.

When the pandemic struck, many people wondered how it was possible to be happy with all the stress and tragedy going on around us. But this week’s guest saw this as a perfect opportunity to understand happiness even better. With his new book, Happier No Matter What, New York Times bestselling author Tal Ben-Shahar looks at how we can cultivate hope, resilience and purpose during the most difficult times of our lives. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why happiness matters during challenging times. What the SPIRE method is and how it can help us. The difference between being happy and being happier.

Many of us go through times when we wonder what it would take to make us happier, but Jackson Kerchis took that question to a whole different level.  Jackson created and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in happiness, integrating insights from neuroscience, positive psychology, religion, philosophy, and direct experience to provide a comprehensive study of what makes us happy. He designed and instructs the University of Alabama’s first ever Happiness 101 course, which is built around his Happiness Habits Project. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why he created his own happiness studies. The role of habits in promoting happiness. How the brain changes with mind training.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and while there are more resources for mental health than ever before, it’s still a topic that’s often overlooked when it comes to men. In this episode, host Paula Felps talks with motivational speaker and wellness expert Quentin Vennie about overcoming the stigma men face when it comes to caring for their mental health. His bestselling memoir, Strong in the Broken Places, detailed his journey from anxiety, depression and addiction to his discovery of wellness practices that he now teaches to others. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why men need to put more focus on their mental health. How women can help on their mental health journey. What the Trinity of Wellness is and how to practice it.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and since we also just celebrated Mother’s Day, it’s a great time to look at where those two things intersect. This week, host Paula Felps talks with Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor about “Mom Rage.” This condition has become prevalent as mothers deal with the added stress of parenting during a pandemic and Dr. Jill, author of Whole Brain Living: The Anatomy of Choice and the Four Characters That Drive Our Life, is here to talk about the four characters we all have that manage our emotional reactions. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why the pandemic has been harder on mothers. What the four characters in your brain do for you. How to use these four characters to create better outcomes.

In just a few days, we’re going to celebrate Mother’s Day, so there’s no better time to take with Abigail Tucker, an award-winning science journalist, New York Times bestselling author and mother of four. She’s also author of the brand new book, Mom Genes: Inside the New Science of Our Ancient Maternal Instinct. In this episode, host Paula Felps talks with Abigail about what moms are made of and the many ways motherhood changes a woman. Her fascinating findings just might change everything you thought you knew about moms! In this episode, you’ll learn: What factors shape a mother’s behavior. How motherhood reconfigures a woman’s brain. How external events influence maternity.

A recent study showed that many Americans are feeling anxious about returning to their workplaces. To wrap up National Stress Awareness Month, host Paula Felps is talking with Darlene Marshall, who combines her master’s in applied positive psychology with fitness and personal training to create a well-rounded approach to well-being. She also hosts the Better Than Fine podcast, and she’s here to talk about how why going back to work is stressing us out … and what we can do about it. In this episode, you’ll learn: What could be making you feel stressed out about returning to work — and how to manage it. How employers can help ease workers’ stress. A simple practice that helps relieve stress.

April is National Stress Awareness Month, and as you might be aware … we’re a little more stressed out than we used to be! In this episode, host Paula Felps talks with Dr. Dravon James — an author, host of Everyday Peace on Unity Radio and an inspirational speaker who has made it her life purpose to help others to tap into their natural ability to transform their lives. She tells us how we can change our lives for the better by changing our approach to stress. In this episode, you’ll learn: The surprising hidden benefits of stress. Why some stress-relieving practices may actually lead to more stress. How gratitude helps relieve stress.